Lynn Green

General Secretary

The General Secretary serves our Union by offering spiritual leadership within the context of the Word and prayer.

The General Secretary is the leader of our Union, both internally in supporting, guiding and encouraging our Associations, Colleges and Churches in mission, and also externally in representing the Union in the UK and abroad, in both Christian and secular settings. Read more...

Dianne Tidball

President

The President of the Baptist Union of Great Britain is elected annually and takes office in May.

The President’s main role is as a communicator / facilitator of our Union’s vision and mission. The President travels around our Union, engaging with local churches, regional Associations and Colleges. Read more...

Our Structure

Governance

Online Directory

What is Christianity?

Our Union of over 2000 churches is supported by staff in thirteen regional associations and three specialist teams based in Didcot, Oxfordshire. Our six Baptist Colleges prepare men and women for ministry and offer ongoing development and training.

Home Mission Grants are given to support a variety of ministries in and through Baptist churches and chaplains across the country. It also enables all our churches and ministers to be supported and helped through the work of the Regional Associations and the specialist teams in Didcot.

Other areas of work

Safeguarding for the protection of adults and children from harm, abuse or neglect. Every church should adopt safeguarding policy statements for children, young people, and adults at risk. We help churches maintain safe environments for all, with processes to follow should something go wrong, and support for everyone involved.

Resources Library

Our Resources Library has a wealth of guideline leaflets and information to help you and your church on a range of topics. You can also find a range of booklets, cards and our Baptists Together magazine available to buy from the Online Shop.

I was in prison and you visited me

There are a range of ways Christians can support prisoners and the Prison Service, writes Baptist minister Tony Cross

‘They let you out then!’

It’s a rather tedious joke every time I return from a visit to a prison. But prisons are no joking matter, of course. They cost a lot of money and the reoffending rate is too high to claim they do much rehabilitation. It’s not for want of trying.

I visit two prisons on a regular basis. One is a foreign nationals’ prison. The inmates are there because they are near the end of their sentence and are awaiting a decision on their removal/repatriation. This is not to be confused with a Detention and Removal Centre for those whose immigration status is under scrutiny.

The other prison is a core local prison. Its main function is to detain prisoners on remand and sentenced prisoners awaiting distribution. As a result it has a very wide range of residents.

The staff of both prisons are generally a very dedicated bunch trying to do the best they can. Most are disillusioned. The basic problem is that they feel there is not enough of them to keep everyone safe and there are not the resources to provide much rehabilitation. In my experience there are too many days when the staffing level prevents or risks preventing a decent regime. By this I mean time for a shower, a phone home and some exercise in the fresh air together with a ‘meaningful activity’.

There are several ways volunteers can make a small difference. I am engaged in two, one at each prison.

I started by being an Official Prison Visitor. I am allocated a prisoner who has asked for a visitor usually because his friends and family are too far away to visit regularly or even at all. We meet up for an hour to chat about anything the prisoner wants to talk about. That could be religion or football or something about their family. I am not there to preach or teach. Just listen like any friend might. Our conversation is strictly confidential.

In another prison I am a member of the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB). It used to be called The Board of Visitors and has a long history. We visit on a regular basis to ensure the prison is fair and decent. We write an annual report for the Prisons’ Minister, who appoints us, and a weekly report for the Governor. In addition we handle prisoner complaints.

As we are a statutory body, set up by act of parliament and managed by the Prison Service we have the right to go anywhere and talk to whoever we wish. I should add that we need, for personal safety, to take some advice from the officers.

In these two roles I feel I am contributing to the prison regime in terms of the two Kingdom Values of friendship and justice.

Samaritans works within prisons. It supports prisoner listening programs, training the listeners and has telephone help lines available to prisoners.

Going into prisons is not everyone’s cup of tea. What else can people do? They could support Prison Fellowship who produces news and prayer items. A church could contact the chaplain at a local prison for similar material. Some churches will have prison staff as members or be in contact with someone. They could offer all sorts of support.

Prison policy is another matter. In the days of castles the dungeon was called an Oubliette because it was where prisoners were forgotten. We may not use the term but the sentiment has hardly changed. The Prison Service has had a higher profile recently and the Government talks of making significant improvements but delivery is another thing. Christians could make a difference by writing to their MP having got the facts from their local prison chaplain or from Prison Fellowship.

Every prison has an IMB and they produce an annual report that is made public. Christians could get these and use it to ask significant questions of the Justice Secretary and Prisons’ Minister. Prisoners have broken the law and deserve to be in prison but they also deserve to be treated fairly and decently.

One final thought. Ex-offenders, can they find a place in church? Some prisoners do find or re-discover faith in prison. What would your church do to help them sustain their spiritual life?